Inside today:
Happy retirement!
• Nichols Hills and NW Community Magazine featuring Fall Home & Garden. • NW OKC Chamber Community Guide and Membership Directory. • Specials from TLC Garden Center.
Nichols Hills Mayor Peter Hoffman and Vice Mayor Steven Goetzinger present retired Municipal Judge Charles B. Lutz with a plaque honoring his 32 years of service. Page 9
Fashion Editor Jennifer Clark shows us what is on trend. Pages B1, B2, B5 & B6.
OKC FRIDAY Vol. 52 No. 22 • Two Sections • 18 pages September 28, 2018
www.okcfriday.com facebook.com/okcfriday Serving affluent far north Oklahoma City, Nichols Hills and The Village for 44 years
Extra half-penny sales tax is already hard at work in Village
Quail Creek Country Club dedicates golf hole to Chi Chi Rodriguez
By Mike W. Ray Staff Writer
Golf legend Chi Chi Rodriguez returned to Quail Creek Golf & Country Club last weekend for a dinner banquet honoring him and the dedication of Hole No. 6. J.R. Homsey chaired and emceed the event, which honored Rodriguez’s historic eight consecutive birdies beginning at the No. 6 hole on the Quail Creek course in the “Silver Pages” senior tournament in 1987. It is the only time Rodriguez ever achieved this record in his pro career. “When you’re hot, you’re hot,” Rodriguez said. Seated are Rodriguez and Homsey, standing are Club Manager Chad Drake and Patsy Homsey. - Photo By Vicki Clark
Work set to begin soon on city streets By Mike W. Ray Staff Writer The first of the street resurfacing projects authorized in the bond issue that voters in The Village approved earlier this year is scheduled to start
next month, while bids on the last two of the six street repair contracts were opened Monday. In a related matter, the bid letting on reconstruction of Britton Road between May Avenue and Pennsylvania
Avenue was pushed back again because of technical issues. Crossland Heavy Contractors of Oklahoma City is scheduled to start the first of See STREETS, Page 7
The extra half-penny increase in The Village city sales tax has already produced more than $165,000 for the municipality’s Capital Improvement Fund. Along with a $10.38 million capital improvements bond issue, The Village voters on Jan. 9 also approved a half-cent increase in the city sales tax, raising the rate from 4 percent to 4.5 percent (or four and one-half cents per dollar) effective April 1. The extra sales-tax revenue is earmarked solely and exclusively for capital improvements. The Oklahoma Tax Commission remitted $472,073 in city sales tax receipts to The Village this month, an 11.63 percent increase over the same month a year ago. City Manager Bruce Stone said $52,452 of that disbursement was deposited in the Capital Improvements Fund, and similar sums were deposited in previous months. Use tax collections in The Village jumped to $62,937 this month, twice as much as the $31,071 received last September. Receipts from tobacco taxes, though – which the Legislature doubled earlier this year – are trending downward, Stone told The Village City Council. The Legislature increased the tobacco tax by $1 per pack, to $2.03 per pack of 20. The cigarette tax typically generates about $60,000 per year for The Village coffers, Stone said, but year-to-date receipts “are down 62 percent.”
Nichols Hills police receive grant for cameras to help to catch the bad guys By Mike W. Ray Staff Writer
- Photo by Mike W. Ray
Nichols Hills Police Officer Jarred McHenry examines one of the three license plate recognition cameras that can “read” and store the text from car tags of vehicles in front of or behind the police cruiser while it’s moving. The small device over the spotlight on the driver’s side is a thermal imaging camera. “If someone’s hiding in the bushes at night, that camera can detect their presence from their body heat,” Nichols Hills Assistant Police Chief Casey Nix said.
A grant to purchase sophisticated license plate recognition equipment was presented recently to the Nichols Hills Police Department. A $25,000 donation from Nichols Hills Crime and Fire Prevention, Inc., paid for a Vigilant Solutions license plate recognition
Do the Chicken Dance Sunday with Quail Creek homeowners Sunday is Fall Family Festival and Oktoberfest time in Quail Creek. Everyone is welcome to attend the festivities, set for 4-6 p.m. at Berta Fay Rex Quail Creek Park. Organizers urge people to bring their family and friends. “This is going to be super fun for all ages and you won’t want to miss it,” they said. There will be an estimated 15 games and tons of prizes, live music, food and more. Plans are for face painting, a photo booth and pumpkin painting.
The Bohemian Knights will be providing entertainment with an Oktoberfest/polka-themed playlist, including the Chicken Dance. Tickets are required for the games and activities and can be purchased through noon sunday online at www.quailcreek.org. Each ticket costs $1, but bundle discounts of $15 for 20 tickets for non Quail Creek Homeowners Association members and $15 for 25 tickets for HOA members. Donations and volunteers are still needed. For more information, email foundation@quailcreek.org.
system, Platesearch. The funds paid for installation of three cameras, plus the requisite computer hardware and software, on one NHPD cruiser. The system can almost instantaneously read tags on vehicles directly ahead of the police unit, as well as vehicles approaching or passing in the opposite lanes, Cox said. It can capture the text on almost all
FRIDAY’s
of the tags coming and going on a two-lane road or street, and 80 percent or more on a four-lane street or highway, Cox said. The system scans the National Crime Information Center database for amber, silver, blue and wanted alerts, stolen vehicles and wanted persons, he said. See POLICE, Page 3
Dog of the Week
Sponsored by Paulette and Leo Kingston of WePayFast.com
Addison is a 6-monthold female Yorkie. Her humans are Larry Bourne and Clay Sliger. She loves playing with her sisters, a cat and dog. She especially loves water, even sneaking in the shower when it’s on. Send Dog of the Week, Cat of the Week and Baby of the Week nominations with complete descriptions to rose@okcfriday.com. Submissions are used in the order they are received.